Habitat for Humanity of Craven County raises the walls on home for New Bern PD employee
Volunteers, Collegiate Challenge students and city officials joined Habitat for Humanity of Craven County staff and board members for the March 3 wall raising ceremony of a new home at 2202 Hartford Ave. in New Bern. The project marks the ninth Habitat home that will be constructed in the Pembroke community as well as the first two-story project the nonprofit has undertaken since 2020.
The homeowner, Monica, expressed her gratitude to HFHCC for the chance to bring her family back to her hometown of New Bern. Monica, who currently lives in a mobile home in Vanceboro, has completed all of the “sweat equity” work required by HFCC in order to qualify for a new house.
“I’m just grateful and I just thank God for this awesome blessing. I live in a place that is not safe for me and my children and I’m very grateful that we are able to have a Habitat home,” said Monica.
The 1,395-square-foot home will feature four bedrooms and two baths, a change from the one-story homes HFHCC has constructed in recent years.
“They gave me an option, they let me choose,” said Monica. “So I talked with my kids and they were like, ‘Hmm, an upstairs? Okay!’”
New Bern Mayor Jeffrey Odham said the wall raising event was “extra special” since it involved a City of New Bern employee. Monica has worked as a certified property and evidence specialist with the New Bern Police Department for the last five years. In 2022 she was recognized as the department’s Civilian Employee of the Year.
“Habitat has been here 35 years and I’ve been here for 45 myself and it’s amazing to see the progress they’ve made in this community,” Odham commented. “Each time we do one of these homes we think back about who is actually being affected.”
Odham said the city was thankful to have community partners like HFHCC to step up in times of need.
“They help fill something that is a vacancy in our community, because we all know affordable housing is something that we desperately need here,” Odham said. “It’s really a nationwide issue but it’s great to have folks stepping up within our community to make that happen.”
HFHCC Board Chair and President Rose MacNeal explained that Habitat’s work “is not a handout it’s a hand up.” MacNeal recognized local Habitat partners and sponsors such as Moen, the New Bern Chamber of Commerce, and the New Bern Breakfast Rotary Club.
“With this build we have a commitment from the Rotary Club to do 270 hours of volunteer time and that means a lot to us,” said MacNeal.
Other donors supporting the project include Christ Episcopal Church, the Harold H. Bate Foundation, PNC Bank and numerous individual donors.
MacNeal also recognized students from Sacred Heart University in Connecticut who were on hand to take part in HFHCC’s 2025 Collegiate Challenge and assist with the construction of the Hartford Ave. home throughout the week. Students from Lourdes University and the University of Delaware will also be arriving throughout the month to assist with the project.
Sacred Heart student Alana Reyes said she decided to join Habitat's Collegiate Challenge due to her family’s past experience with the nonprofit.
“I really like the concept of Habitat because my dad used to be a construction worker and he was around a lot of Habitat volunteers,” she commented. “I thought it was cool that I could work so closely with that process.”
Following the wall raising ceremony, the homeowner said she was excited to be another step closer to bringing her family back to New Bern.
“I’m overwhelmed with the support today,” Monica said. “I thank all the people that have volunteered this far. I really appreciate the students that have shown up and are continuing to show up to help.”
Habitat for Humanity of Craven County was established in 1989 as an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, a non-profit Christian housing ministry. Over the last 35 years, HFHCC has helped build homes for more than 80 local residents, providing safe and stable living environments for adults and their children.
To learn more, visit www.cravencountyhabitat.org.